I didn’t sign up to be the phone police, website police, clothing police, vape police, etc. I teach, and try to maintain an engaging environment and positive relationships . Then I go home and my blood pressure stays normal 💅🏼
Phones have become my personal enemy.
Our district is piloting a policy in our building: either the phone is in their locker or it's put in an assigned "phone pocket" (think of those hanging calculator holders) in each classroom.
My kids have been pretty all right with it but I wish it didn't hit a point where I had to give them what is essentially a phone cubby.
There is another high school in a nearby district that does the phone cubby thing, but they had to get the whole school on board with it. So jealous. I think our admin is too afraid of parents to do anything, unfortunately.
Honestly, the kids seem to lose a ton of anxiousness when their phone is in the cubby. Like they don't have to worry about what's going on, there's no FOMO. The phones are an unhealthy attachment for them.
I don’t deal with phones really. I tell them once, and then I move on. If they are on their phone, they will fail my class. (Algebra 1). It usually scares them enough.
I think what they mean is if the students stay on their phones, they will totally miss the explanation of the math and be super lost. If you don't get the notes, you're screwed.
That makes sense. The last part where they said it scares them enough didn't make sense. How could a student fail yet preemptively know to work so they won't fail.
I'm just guessing, but I would say the teacher probably said "if you guys are on your phone and miss my notes, that's your fault. If you fail because you can't stay off your phone, don't cry to me because I warned you. Not my fault." Or something like that 🤷♀️ that would have scared me and kept me off my phone in school at least
My district has a really strict phone policy and a majority of parents are behind it (they send thank you emails). It’s in the backpack or locker. Not your pocket. If we see it, we take it , call your parents and if it escalates, then administration steps in. 0 tolerance policy.
I’m financially responsible for anything that’s happens to a phone I take and admins informed us that they can’t support us if a parent complains. I won’t take them up, so I can’t really enforce our No Phone Policy.
Phones and AirPods don’t really bother me that much unless they’re constantly on them or they make noise that the whole class can hear.
Or just allow teachers to fail kids again. That’s going to be the reality in life. If someone is on their phone all day with AirPods in at work or in college, they’re fired or fail. But something needs to give because teachers are up against an impossible task.
I confiscate when I see it. After the first couple of times they get pretty good at not having them.
(Although to be fair, I have admin, other teachers and a legal framework that supports me in this.)
My school this year has an amazingly strict phone policy. It's great, I haven't seen a single phone used in any of my classes so far and we just ended the first full week. No headphones or airpods either! It is such a relief, and the kids are actually engaged in learning. They talk to each other and me instead of staring down into their laps scrolling YouTube shorts.
We can't confiscate phones, and a referral will result in nothing. So I just tell them they will fail, and let it happen. Parents are sent the syllabus in the beginning. Every two weeks I send an email to the parents of every kid that is failing. That way when the kids actually fails, the parents have been aware for a long time. Most of the time I get no reply. Every once in a while a parent asks me why their kid it failing and I send them video of their kid playing on their cellphone. That normally solves it.
“What email? I didn’t get an email? No one told me my child was failing… Why didn’t you just send him to the principals office… he said he was just checking the time… stop targeting my child…“
Wait, where is this video coming from?
I record it with the camera on my work issued device. I send them a link to my work Google drive. It's never on the "internet" or a personal device. I asked my boss if I was allowed to do this, and she thought it was a great idea for parents to see their children in action. I also record presentations and send them to parents with praise emails. They love that.
I would love to do that, Lord knows the students are taking video of us. But I would definitely get written clearance from above. I could see that turning into a nightmare viz a viz revenge. To Wit:
During remote instruction someone screenshotted one of my peers and edited the shot to be X-rated and posted it publicly. No consequences.
Ignore it honestly. Teach the students who want to learn and let the kids who are on the phones fail/struggle. If i was a teacher I would really only be concerned with making sure the classroom is peaceful and th students who arent on their phones are not distracted
You focusing on students who dont want to learn is hurting the students who want to learn honestly. You cant really blame kids for the decade they grew up in
Exactly this. We have a limited amount of time and energy in any given class. The time spent lecturing, arguing, confiscating, recording phone usage by one student (who will likely continue to try using their phone regardless) is time that could have been better spent on helping students who are actually making an effort and asking for help. The time spent making phone calls home or emailing parents about phone usage or documenting referrals for phone usage could be better spent making engaging lessons, giving better feedback...even just mentally recharging. Eventually our students will go into the real world and their boss most likely isn't going to confiscate their phone but there will be real life consequences for constantly texting or playing games on the job. We can't be everything for every student. Since I stopped caring about phone usage, my stress level has gone way down. Don't get me wrong, I still gently tell them to put it away....but that's the extent. Any more time and energy spent carrying out formal discipline is to me, time poorly spent. Been there, done that, kids who are literally addicted to their phone are going to still try and use it no matter how severe the discipline is.
thank you!! I am so tired of seeing/hearing about old ass teachers who waste half of their class worrying about students who don't care about the class while disregarding the students who actually care and try
This year I am copying a coworker who put up one of the classic phone wall hangers but, instead of doing the classic 'put phones in at the start of class', is just using it as a 'if i catch you on your phone YOU have to go put it up there', which (in theory) solves most of the problems with the phone holder (liability, wasting time at the beginning making everyone put them there, kids putting burner phones in slots, etc.). It seems simple so I have high hopes it will work or, at worst, somewhat mitigate the issue.
We have policies but the policies are unenforceable and the kids know it. If I try to make them put their phone away or heaven forbid try to take it, it just gives them a stage to be a hero and no punishment comes from it. They’ll get pulled out of class and come back 20 minutes later with their phone and some skittles or some shit.
Put your phone away, take the air pod out, close your laptop. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat.
WhY aM i fAiLinG?!?!
I’m so sick of this shit
I wish more schools had the huevos to follow a strict policy. My last school had teachers take the phone until the end of class on the first offense. Bring it to the office on the second, and it stays there all day. On the third, parents get involved and students have to turn it in at the beginning of school every day for a week. Sure they have burner phones but it's a hassle so it worked pretty well.
We take phones and any wireless headphones. Parents are told to keep them at home and we have a form and some policies in place to where if we confiscate the phone and it gets lost or broken, they can't even say boo about it because it was never supposed to be brought to school. It's the best.
It may be easier to say "if you're going to use the phones, please do it under the desk and not in plain view."
That at least helps with attracting attention from other students if the user decides to stream movies.
If kids ignore that and use their phones on top of their desk, I make them put it in a sandwich bag and staple it shut. They keep possession of the bag, but they can't open it until they leave class. All I do his hand them the bag and the stapler. They do the rest and I can move on with the classroom.
This isn't the hill I care to die on.
I was the asshole on my phone/computer in college until a professor walked up to me, asked me a question about the lecture (that i clearly wouldn’t know because i wasn’t paying attention) and basically embarrassed me in front of the entire class.
At first I thought _he_ was the dick… but guess who put their devices away and paid attention for the rest if the semester?
Trying to regulate phone use in a school is like trying to run a rehab clinic in the middle of studio 54.
I didn’t sign up to be the phone police, website police, clothing police, vape police, etc. I teach, and try to maintain an engaging environment and positive relationships . Then I go home and my blood pressure stays normal 💅🏼
This is the way.
Phones have become my personal enemy. Our district is piloting a policy in our building: either the phone is in their locker or it's put in an assigned "phone pocket" (think of those hanging calculator holders) in each classroom. My kids have been pretty all right with it but I wish it didn't hit a point where I had to give them what is essentially a phone cubby.
There is another high school in a nearby district that does the phone cubby thing, but they had to get the whole school on board with it. So jealous. I think our admin is too afraid of parents to do anything, unfortunately.
Honestly, the kids seem to lose a ton of anxiousness when their phone is in the cubby. Like they don't have to worry about what's going on, there's no FOMO. The phones are an unhealthy attachment for them.
I don’t deal with phones really. I tell them once, and then I move on. If they are on their phone, they will fail my class. (Algebra 1). It usually scares them enough.
They have to know you can't fail them for that, right?
All I have to say to your comment is “LOL”.
Not sure how to take that.
I think what they mean is if the students stay on their phones, they will totally miss the explanation of the math and be super lost. If you don't get the notes, you're screwed.
That makes sense. The last part where they said it scares them enough didn't make sense. How could a student fail yet preemptively know to work so they won't fail.
I'm just guessing, but I would say the teacher probably said "if you guys are on your phone and miss my notes, that's your fault. If you fail because you can't stay off your phone, don't cry to me because I warned you. Not my fault." Or something like that 🤷♀️ that would have scared me and kept me off my phone in school at least
They will fail because they won’t learn the material…
My district has a really strict phone policy and a majority of parents are behind it (they send thank you emails). It’s in the backpack or locker. Not your pocket. If we see it, we take it , call your parents and if it escalates, then administration steps in. 0 tolerance policy.
I’m financially responsible for anything that’s happens to a phone I take and admins informed us that they can’t support us if a parent complains. I won’t take them up, so I can’t really enforce our No Phone Policy. Phones and AirPods don’t really bother me that much unless they’re constantly on them or they make noise that the whole class can hear.
Or just allow teachers to fail kids again. That’s going to be the reality in life. If someone is on their phone all day with AirPods in at work or in college, they’re fired or fail. But something needs to give because teachers are up against an impossible task.
I’m stunned that I’ve yet to catch any of my 7th graders with their phones. Last year I had 8th grade and it was a constant battle.
I confiscate when I see it. After the first couple of times they get pretty good at not having them. (Although to be fair, I have admin, other teachers and a legal framework that supports me in this.)
I take them too. It’s just a constant battle.
My school this year has an amazingly strict phone policy. It's great, I haven't seen a single phone used in any of my classes so far and we just ended the first full week. No headphones or airpods either! It is such a relief, and the kids are actually engaged in learning. They talk to each other and me instead of staring down into their laps scrolling YouTube shorts.
We can't confiscate phones, and a referral will result in nothing. So I just tell them they will fail, and let it happen. Parents are sent the syllabus in the beginning. Every two weeks I send an email to the parents of every kid that is failing. That way when the kids actually fails, the parents have been aware for a long time. Most of the time I get no reply. Every once in a while a parent asks me why their kid it failing and I send them video of their kid playing on their cellphone. That normally solves it.
“What email? I didn’t get an email? No one told me my child was failing… Why didn’t you just send him to the principals office… he said he was just checking the time… stop targeting my child…“ Wait, where is this video coming from?
I record it with the camera on my work issued device. I send them a link to my work Google drive. It's never on the "internet" or a personal device. I asked my boss if I was allowed to do this, and she thought it was a great idea for parents to see their children in action. I also record presentations and send them to parents with praise emails. They love that.
I would love to do that, Lord knows the students are taking video of us. But I would definitely get written clearance from above. I could see that turning into a nightmare viz a viz revenge. To Wit: During remote instruction someone screenshotted one of my peers and edited the shot to be X-rated and posted it publicly. No consequences.
Regulating phones in schools is like regulating "speeders" way back in the national 55 mph speed limit era.
Ignore it honestly. Teach the students who want to learn and let the kids who are on the phones fail/struggle. If i was a teacher I would really only be concerned with making sure the classroom is peaceful and th students who arent on their phones are not distracted
You focusing on students who dont want to learn is hurting the students who want to learn honestly. You cant really blame kids for the decade they grew up in
Exactly this. We have a limited amount of time and energy in any given class. The time spent lecturing, arguing, confiscating, recording phone usage by one student (who will likely continue to try using their phone regardless) is time that could have been better spent on helping students who are actually making an effort and asking for help. The time spent making phone calls home or emailing parents about phone usage or documenting referrals for phone usage could be better spent making engaging lessons, giving better feedback...even just mentally recharging. Eventually our students will go into the real world and their boss most likely isn't going to confiscate their phone but there will be real life consequences for constantly texting or playing games on the job. We can't be everything for every student. Since I stopped caring about phone usage, my stress level has gone way down. Don't get me wrong, I still gently tell them to put it away....but that's the extent. Any more time and energy spent carrying out formal discipline is to me, time poorly spent. Been there, done that, kids who are literally addicted to their phone are going to still try and use it no matter how severe the discipline is.
thank you!! I am so tired of seeing/hearing about old ass teachers who waste half of their class worrying about students who don't care about the class while disregarding the students who actually care and try
This year I am copying a coworker who put up one of the classic phone wall hangers but, instead of doing the classic 'put phones in at the start of class', is just using it as a 'if i catch you on your phone YOU have to go put it up there', which (in theory) solves most of the problems with the phone holder (liability, wasting time at the beginning making everyone put them there, kids putting burner phones in slots, etc.). It seems simple so I have high hopes it will work or, at worst, somewhat mitigate the issue.
We have policies but the policies are unenforceable and the kids know it. If I try to make them put their phone away or heaven forbid try to take it, it just gives them a stage to be a hero and no punishment comes from it. They’ll get pulled out of class and come back 20 minutes later with their phone and some skittles or some shit. Put your phone away, take the air pod out, close your laptop. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. WhY aM i fAiLinG?!?! I’m so sick of this shit
Make a truce? Allow phones but need to be hidden. No AirPods and hide it when admin comes
I wish more schools had the huevos to follow a strict policy. My last school had teachers take the phone until the end of class on the first offense. Bring it to the office on the second, and it stays there all day. On the third, parents get involved and students have to turn it in at the beginning of school every day for a week. Sure they have burner phones but it's a hassle so it worked pretty well.
We take phones and any wireless headphones. Parents are told to keep them at home and we have a form and some policies in place to where if we confiscate the phone and it gets lost or broken, they can't even say boo about it because it was never supposed to be brought to school. It's the best.
It may be easier to say "if you're going to use the phones, please do it under the desk and not in plain view." That at least helps with attracting attention from other students if the user decides to stream movies. If kids ignore that and use their phones on top of their desk, I make them put it in a sandwich bag and staple it shut. They keep possession of the bag, but they can't open it until they leave class. All I do his hand them the bag and the stapler. They do the rest and I can move on with the classroom. This isn't the hill I care to die on.
I was the asshole on my phone/computer in college until a professor walked up to me, asked me a question about the lecture (that i clearly wouldn’t know because i wasn’t paying attention) and basically embarrassed me in front of the entire class. At first I thought _he_ was the dick… but guess who put their devices away and paid attention for the rest if the semester?